Keemun Chinese Black Tea from The Tea Spot

by TeaRax

I love the discovery of new tea flavors, finding their nuances, comparing and contrasting from a baseline. I started educating myself on tea with subscription boxes, and still have a soft spot for them. Looks like Tea Spot will be my next choice. They offer a monthly subscription box for $16 for about an ounce worth of 5-6 teas and also a quarterly loose leaf club at $45 for 3+ teas of one chosen style, in larger portions obviously. This selection seems to be from the former.

The dry Keemun smells very gentle, a bit like the coriander in my cupboard. There are uniformly tight, straight, leaves, appearing medium on the spectrum of browns. I see some broken bits in wet leaves and a tamarind color brew. It smells subtly sweet, and reminds me of cherries – cheerful but with a slightly tart finish.  1 heaping tsp per 8 oz from the brewing instructions, does not make a strong tea, which some people prefer. I’m not the type to drink this flavor straight, because tannins and I are frenemies.  I think it is It may leave a slight orange taste in my mouth but, this tea is still excellent at its job of caffeinating me!

Just like the Beastie Boys, I like my Sugar with [Keemun] and cream, too sweet to be sour, too nice to be mean.

 

Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type:  Black
Where to Buy: The Tea Spot
Description:

A splendor of toasty flavor and aroma! The most refined and perhaps the most well-known of Chinese black teas, this Keemun is handpicked in Anhui Province. This tea has an indescribable flavor, with the most delicate hints of smoky pine, orchid, crushed apple and a rich, sweet body.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

TeaRax

My favorite tea is always changing, like a typical Gemini. When I was a teenager, my native Washington Starbucks coffee was forbidden, but I occasionally snuck in a chai latte, so black teas have been my go-to morning drink when I feel feisty. As an adult, I spent 3+ years living in China and Japan where I learned about green, white, oolong, and pu'er teas origins. I was even prescribed traditional medicinal teas while I was there and that's a taste you don't soon forget! But it didn't scare me away from herbals - I really like cold brewing rooibos and tisanes now because I can share them with my toddler. I am back in school to become a geologist, and these science textbooks can be difficult to get through without a strong cuppa. When I'm not studying, I love pairing my teas with my BFFL and salted caramel macarons, or having existential chats with my dad.

This post was posted in Black Tea, The Tea Spot

Waffley Wedded Custom Blend from Plum Deluxe

by MrsPremise

Waffley Wedded from Plum Deluxe is a specialty blend, and I was lucky to get a taste thanks to a tea swap.  In trying this tea I learned that Plum Deluxe can be contacted to make a custom blend for a special occasion, in this case for a wedding.

With such a sweet and punny name, I was predisposed to like Waffley Wedded.  I got a novelty waffle iron a few holidays ago and I use just about every weekend.  This is a great tea have on hand while I’m waiting for my waffles to cook.

This is a blend of black and oolong tea, so it is both full-bodied but has a rounded mouthfeel.  Sweet maple and creamy vanilla are the driving flavors, perfect on its own or with a dash of milk to pump up the dessert-like experience.  A hint of citrus comes through from the orange peels to help the blend bright and not overly sweet.

You won’t see this blend on their everyday listing, but if you’re looking for something similar give Pick Me Up Oolong a try, which also has maple and oolong flavors.  Or blend your own tea favors for a special occasion and customize it just the way you like.

Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type: Black and Oolong
Where to Buy: Plum Deluxe

To have your own custom blend made and see all the amazing blends Plum Deluxe has to offer, click below.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

MrsPremise

Growing up, I drank herbal teas like fresh ginger tea during New England's harsh winters and iced blueberry tea during its humid summers. Over time, I was tempted into trying a wider variety of loose leaf teas by the fandom-themed blends available online. I have since gone on to design my own blends, and I greatly enjoy drafting up flavor ideas and drawing tea labels. When I'm not thinking about tea I can be found reading novels and comic books, playing video games, or watching movies; my favorite genres being history, humor, sci-fi, and fantasy. Generally, I prefer bold teas: spicy chais, rich black teas, even smoky lapsang souchong on occasion. But I have also dabbled in herbal rooibos, flavored oolongs, and traditional matcha. I'm glad to be expanding my palette by tasting and reviewing new teas and blends. Find me on Steepster: http://steepster.com/A2shedsjackson Fandom blends: http://www.adagio.com/signature_blend/list.html?userId=292149

This post was posted in Black Tea, Oolong, Plum Deluxe

Memory from Virginia Tea Company

by TeaRax

Ginkgo biloba touts an amazing comeback story. Had it not been for one monastery keeping it as a sacred plant, it would have disappeared from our planet entirely! A group of these trees in Hiroshima even survived an atomic bomb (soooooo yeah, bulletproof coffee needs to step it up a bit, eh?)

And had you all not heard that amazing story from a biology class, you’d still be in luck, because fortunately the Virginia Tea co has done all the herbal medicine research and responsible sourcing for you, Thank you Kickstarter supporters! This tea is entirely to credit (blame??) for any extra wild anecdotes I happen to remember from Fall Quarter

This offering has beautiful, large leafy components and all sorts of flavor packed little herbal goodies just perfectly balanced. There is a distinctly sweet, innocent floral scent going on here that is super relaxing, a good “stop and smell the roses” kinda moment. Very youthful and uplifting.

I love drinking these “mind-boosting” teas on exam days. As usual I personally prefer a bit of sweetener in these teas. Whether they truly help me remember how to do a crazy math skill or not, I’m at peace even with just the placebo effect.

Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type: Herbal
Where to Buy: Virginia Tea Company
Your brain is a very powerful organ and needs to be nourished. This blend of gingko, gotu kola, spearmint, and sage are exactly what your mind needs to increase awareness and retain memory.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

TeaRax

My favorite tea is always changing, like a typical Gemini. When I was a teenager, my native Washington Starbucks coffee was forbidden, but I occasionally snuck in a chai latte, so black teas have been my go-to morning drink when I feel feisty. As an adult, I spent 3+ years living in China and Japan where I learned about green, white, oolong, and pu'er teas origins. I was even prescribed traditional medicinal teas while I was there and that's a taste you don't soon forget! But it didn't scare me away from herbals - I really like cold brewing rooibos and tisanes now because I can share them with my toddler. I am back in school to become a geologist, and these science textbooks can be difficult to get through without a strong cuppa. When I'm not studying, I love pairing my teas with my BFFL and salted caramel macarons, or having existential chats with my dad.

This post was posted in Fruit/Herbal Tisane, Virginia Tea Company

Candy Apple from Tickled Tea. . . .

by VariaTEA

I never got into the whole candy apple thing. I can recall eating one in my life with a friend at Canada’s Wonderland. I blame braces. Candy apples are like the number one item on the “do not eat” list for those with braces. That and mostly I enjoyed chocolate covered or caramel apples. However, when I saw this Candy Apple tea by Tickled Tea (made with Fair Trade Chinese green tea, apple pieces, cinnamon bark, rose hips, beet root, and artificial flavoring), I was intrigued.

I brewed this both hot and iced. Both were steeped for approximately 3 minutes in 185F water.

Hot, this tea does have a sweet apple flavor. The chinese green tea is more roasty than vegetal and provides the base layer of flavor. To me this is a little weird because it gives it more of a Fall/Winter vibe than a light Spring/Summer vibe that you’d expect with a candy apple tea. Once you get past that though you get a whole lot of baked apple flavor with a nice sweetness. Between the base tea, the cinnamon, and the baked good vibe, I would say this is more baked apple than candy apple, at least when it comes to the hot tea.

Iced this is a lot lighter than the hot tea but unfortunately a lot more vegetal. There is a candy apply flavor but it tastes a bit like a candy apple that was dropped in the grass. Not really what I was hoping for if I am being honest.

So I definitely prefer this hot over iced and though it was enjoyable, it’s more baked apple than candy apple. Not bad but not what the name promises either.

Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type:  Green
Where to Buy:  Tickled Tea
Description

This tea is no longer available but click below for green teas that are.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

VariaTEA

Hey there! My name is Rachel. I’m a twenty-something from Toronto, Ontario, Canada who loves dogs and has a bit of an obsession with tea. As a child I hated the stuff since all I ever knew was Red Rose (no offense to Red Rose). However, a few years ago that all changed. I was on a diet and desperate for new flavors without adding calories and that’s when I turned to tea. I started off by going to DAVIDsTEA and Teavana for all their dessert-inspired flavors, and since I didn’t know any better, I bought 100 grams each of about twenty-something different teas. This was okay for the teas I liked but for those I didn’t I needed to find some way of getting rid of them. Enter Steepster.com. This is where I met some incredible tea friends, discovered tea swaps, and learned of so many amazing tea companies. My desire to try all the teas grew and since joining three years ago I have tried over a thousand different teas. I have learned what ingredients I love and I have learned what flavors I don’t like. I determined my go-to brewing method is Western-style with no added milk or sweeteners, though I also enjoy cold brewing, iced teas, teapops, lattes, and smoothies. I have yet to brew gong-fu style but I hope to do so just as soon as I get the proper teaware to do it. About a year ago, I actually stopped drinking tea but as my stash of over 200 teas started aging I decided I needed to respark my interest. I chose to take a 365 days of tea challenge on Instagram in which I post a new tea picture every day. So far it has been rather successful as I find myself drinking (and buying) more and more tea each day. Plus it enabled CuppaGeek to find me and invite me here to SororiTea Sisters.

This post was posted in Green Tea, Tickled Tea

Endurance Citrus Mint from Sportland Tea Co. . . .

by TeaRax

This is my first time brewing matcha powder and leaves together, and I wasn’t quite sure what to do with it. I didn’t want to whisk fibers out of the leaves, but I also didn’t want to lose out on any matcha goodness in a filter bag. I settled on using a gravity brewer to trap the leaves but let matcha through.

This Endurance citrus mint brewed a unique opaque army green. We start with a definite mint smell, but I don’t taste it…and it’s subtle on the green tea … perhaps my tastebuds are too busy with the strong lemongrass flavor? There’s a soft aftertaste tingle on the tongue that travels down the throat with a gentle ginger zing – hello, I’m awake now! The density of the particles in this tea causes a heavier, fuller mouthfeel, to the point where I felt as if it were starting to coat my tongue. This was especially true on those last, sediment-rich sips.

I love the idea of matcha teas as a midday or workout time pick-me-up. I’ve seen some brands who sell pure fine-ground matcha, who also sell this hybrid with larger flavor bits at a lower cost. Though I am frugal, I’m too much a traditionalist at heart to be able to fully embrace this ”best-of-both-tea-worlds” bag and powder offering from Sportland Tea Co.

Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type: Green Tea and Matcha
Where to Buy: Sportland Tea Co.

Sportland Tea Co.’s Endurance Blend is a unique mix of matcha green tea and herbs. With ginger, mint, and ginseng. This blend is an invigorating option any time of the day.

Drink approximately 15-30 minutes before a workout, run, or when you are having a long day at the office. Try it over ice for an even more refreshing and hydrating option!

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

TeaRax

My favorite tea is always changing, like a typical Gemini. When I was a teenager, my native Washington Starbucks coffee was forbidden, but I occasionally snuck in a chai latte, so black teas have been my go-to morning drink when I feel feisty. As an adult, I spent 3+ years living in China and Japan where I learned about green, white, oolong, and pu'er teas origins. I was even prescribed traditional medicinal teas while I was there and that's a taste you don't soon forget! But it didn't scare me away from herbals - I really like cold brewing rooibos and tisanes now because I can share them with my toddler. I am back in school to become a geologist, and these science textbooks can be difficult to get through without a strong cuppa. When I'm not studying, I love pairing my teas with my BFFL and salted caramel macarons, or having existential chats with my dad.

This post was posted in Green Tea, Sportland Tea Co.